Royal Family 101: The family tree of Prince William and Prince Harry

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry join a training day with runners taking part in the 2017 London Marathon, at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London, UK, on the 5th February 2017. Picture by James Whatling

Families are always confusing, but for Prince William, his genealogy comes with added complexities. Names change—Prince Albert took the name of King George VI when he acceded the throne in 1936–as do titles—Prince William was just Prince William until his grandmother gave him a title, Duke of Cambridge, on his wedding day. Suddenly any reference of Prince William in official documents mentioned only his new title.

It doesn’t help when the same names are repeated: the present monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, while her mother also had the same first name, and was known as Queen Elizabeth until her husband, George VI, died in 1952, and then as Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. Add to that honorifics—Her Majesty (HM) for the Queen, Her/His Royal Highness (HRH) added to the front of names for the rest of the House of Windsor—and it’s easy to get mixed up.

What’s in and out of Prince William and Harry’s family tree

In: The family tree goes back to their great-grandparents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, and includes spouses and children in the direct line of succession to the throne. It’s streamlined and simplified for easy reading.

Out: Brothers and sisters of the generations are omitted, as are cousins and second cousins, and third cousins. Ditto for royal titles such as Prince William’s dukedom of Cambridge: that’s for another graphic.